Lancer-Class Frigate
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Starships of the Galaxy After the Imperial defeat at the Battle of Yavin, Naval Command developed the Lancer-Class Frigate as an antifighter escort for larger ships that might be susceptible to the Alliance's Starfighter tactics. Although it is the size of a light cruiser, the Lancer-Class was designed to destroy small ships at close range. Early Lancers were plagued with severe fire control malfunctions that could shut down more than half of the ship's Laser Cannons, making the craft less than useless. Overall, the Lancer-Class was eventually considered a failure by Imperial command. Because the ship was too expensive to see much more than sporadic deployment within the Imperial Fleet, the majority of Lancers are assigned to planetary defense and rear guard actions. Despite this, Grand Admiral Thrawn employed the Lancer's capabilities to excellent effect, using them to raid New Republic worlds that were largely equipped with Starfighter-based defenses. Though no specific Lancers in the Imperial Navy have distinguished themselves, one frigate- captured by The Rebel Alliance- has been made famous by its success. The Fowler, a late-model Lancer-Class captured by Alliance forces near Malastare, was put into service as an anti-TIE Fighter platform. Retrofitted with an improved Hyperdrive, The Fowler was sent on strike missions, providing cover for Y-Wing Starfighters. In its role as an antistarfighter platform, the Rebel Lancer racked up an impressive number of kills, surviving long enough to be decommissioned after the formation of The New Republic. Capabilities Because it is slower than it's intended targets, the Lancer-Class Frigate is unable to actively seek out and engage enemy Starfighters on it's own. Instead, it is used by the Empire as a picket vessel, deployed on the outskirts of a fleet's perimeter. The ship's excellent capabilities in an antistarfighter role are perhaps it's greatest weakness when it comes against Capital Ships. The relatively light Laser Cannons it is equipped with cannot compete with the armor and shields of Capital Ships. Likewise, the range of capital-scale weaponry far exceeds that of the weapons the Lancer-Class employs, thus guaranteeing that it is an easy target when pitted against them. Lancer-Class Frigate Statistics (CL 14) Colossal (Frigate) Capital Ship Initiative: -3; Senses: Perception +5 Defense Reflex Defense: 14 (Flat-Footed 12), Fortitude Defense: 38; +12 Armor Hit Points: 800; Damage Reduction: 15; Shield Rating 125; Damage Threshold: 138 Offense Speed: Fly 3 Squares (Starship Scale) Ranged: Laser Cannon, Quad, Point-Defense, Batteries (4) +12 (See Below) Fighting Space: 1 Square (Starship Scale); Total Cover Base Attack Bonus: +0; Grapple: +48 Attack Options: Autofire (Laser Cannon, Quad, Point-Defense, Batteries), Focused Fire (1 Square) Special Actions: Tactical Fire (See below) Abilities Strength: 66, Dexterity: 14, Constitution: -, Intelligence: 18 Skills: Initiative -3, Mechanics +5, Perception +5, Pilot -3, Use Computer +5 Ship Statistics Crew: 850 (Normal Crew Quality); Passengers: 40 (Troops) Cargo: 300 Tons; Consumables: 1 Week; Carried Craft: None Hyperdrive: Class 2 (Backup Class 15), Navicomputer Availability: Military; Cost: Not available for sale Weapon Systems Laser Cannon, Quad, Point-Defense, Battery (5 Gunners) Attack Bonus: +12 (+7 Autofire), Damage: 4d10x2 Tactical Fire The Lancer-Class Frigate is exceptionally good at punching through enemy Starfighters' defenses, weakening their shields so that allied fighters can finish them off. As a Standard Action, a Lancer-Class Frigate can forgo all attacks to provide Tactical Fire to all adjacent squares. Enemy Starships of Gargantuan size and smaller have their Shield Rating halved while within these squares. Category:Vehicles Category:Starships Category:Capital Ships